The Great Clans are the rulers of the Steppe in all but name. The Rhadya and Vyshalka pass laws that apply across the Steppe, but it is the Clans who put those laws into practice and who actually rule the Tomarran people.
The Clans came together at the end of the bloody Clan Wars to negotiate a peace and a new way of ruling the nation. No longer would a single Koro rule over all the territory their riders could patrol — instead, the four surviving Clans made the Vyshalka the nominal Koro of the entire Steppe, and built a power-sharing agreement between themselves.
Over time, the idea of a Clan having “territory” has fallen completely out of use, and now each of the four Clans have stations set up in every large settlement and many small settlements. These Clanhouses act as embassies, neutral ground for any Tomarran to come and speak with representatives from the Clan. The Clanhouses are also how the Clans actually govern the Steppe — whichever Clan is judged to have precedence in a region or settlement is deferred to by the others, their representative acting as mayor for the settlement and passing down laws and judgments from the Radhya and the Clans themselves. The politics behind which of the four Clans has sway over a given settlement is a fluid and oftentimes murky affair, involving a great deal of historical tradition, the preferences of the local population, and horse-trading amongst the Clans themselves.
Above all else, though, the Clans hold to the principle that any conflicts or disagreements between them must never spill out into active hostilities. When one Clan gains too much control over a region of the Steppe, they are expected to cede some of that dominion to one of the others in order to maintain the political balance of the nation as a whole. Whenever one of them fails to maintain this balance the other three immediately come together in opposition. Every member of the Clans is taught from childhood of the horrors of the Age of Thunder and the Clan Wars, and they will not brook another Clan attempting to gain dominion over the Steppe at the cost of the peace that their ancestors forged so long ago.
The center of power for the Krovodny, or Bloodhoof, Clan is the western plain of the Steppe, from the western edge of Peladoste to the southern reaches of Kana Bay in Kanazve. The majority of the nomadic Kiths that call that region home owe fealty to the Krovodny. The Krovodny are the most militaristic of the four Clans; they were the Clan that fought and bled and died against the Vauldan Legions, and they have sworn that they will never again allow foreign aggressors to claim Tomarran soil. In modern times the Bloodhooves functionally run the military forces of the Steppe, recruiting, training, and deploying Eagles, Vultures, and their assorted support personnel to ensure the security of the Tomarran people.
The Sazhirny, or Snowpaw, Clan calls the long and cold tundra of Kanazve and Zhyamade along Tomarr’s northern coast home. They are by far the most religious of the Clans, sponsoring many Khramadzi across the Steppe, as well as running schools of healing and philosophy in Tomarran cities. Shrikes owing fealty to the Sazhirny are particularly thorough and bloody in their work, hunting down enemies of the Tomarran people with a fervent passion.
The Yarkavy, or Sunmane, Clan ****has no major power center in the Steppe; their presence is spread throughout the nation, for they are the Clan most focused on trade and movement of goods in and out of every corner of the Steppe. Every nomadic Kith is tracked by Yarkavy representatives when they enter a settlement, and when a caravan is late for a scheduled stop it is the Yarkavy who sound the alarm and seek out warriors to investigate the delay and possibly rescue the travelers. If someone needs something transported across the Steppe, it is the Yarkavy or one of their subordinate Kiths who that person would turn to first.
The Zelvarghy, or Greenwing, Clan is the most “civilized” of the four, with their origins and power base lying in the great metropolises of Peladoste and Lyukabte. They are the Clan most focused on infrastructure and agriculture. It is their granaries and mills, and those of their subordinate Kiths, that are used by most farmers. It is their workers who maintain the Imperial Causeways that the Vauldan Empire built across the southern half of the Steppe, and who have built new ones so that it is possible to traverse the entire breadth of the nation without stepping off of a road. The Zelvarghy abhor violence even more than the average Tomarran, but they also employ some of the most experienced guards to watch over the cities and waystations across the Steppe, who are all-too-happy to beat to a pulp those who would disturb the peace that the Greenwings treasure so much.
The Rhadya is a council of elders chosen by the Four Clans to represent them in the city of Hostarovy and the nation’s government. Each Clan sends seven of their elders to the Rhadya, choosing the wisest, canniest, or most knowledgeable candidates from amongst their number and those of their subordinate Kiths whom they trust to be faithful representatives. Most members of the Rhadya only serve a decade at most, but those who can maintain their Clan’s confidence in their abilities throughout the years can become fixtures of the mountain city’s political scene for a generation or more.
The Rhadya mostly acts as a semi-democratic counterbalance to the totalitarian power of the Vyshalka, voting on whether to implement or deny the Vyshalka’s plans and proposals. It can also act upon smaller-scale issues without needing the Vyshalka’s approval, though this is seen as being a snub towards the Vyshalka and undercutting their authority if it’s done while they are present in the mountain.
The nation is led by the Vyshalka, who acts as head of state and commander in chief of the Clans’ armed forces, proposes national legislation for the Rhadya to ratify, works with the Clans to enforce the laws of the Steppe, and mediates disputes between the Clans and Kiths.
The Vyshalka ascends to claim the Dragonscale Crown every seven years through successfully completing a series of twenty-eight trials set by the Rhadya, one for each elder on the council. These trials are open to all Viskyne and Nyzkine, and the individual who performs best in the eyes of the Rhadya is chosen to claim the title of Vyshalka. There is no term-limit on how many times someone can claim the Dragonscale Crown; the only limitation is on someone’s ability to best their rivals in the trials, which always involve a mixture of physical, intellectual, and social challenges and competitions. In some years the Clans will attempt to control who gains access to Hostarovy to participate in the trials, to ensure their candidates have better odds of success, but there are many stories of plucky Nyzkine of minor Kiths sneaking through the roadblocks and succeeding at the trials, taking the title of Vyshalka and ruling over the Great Clans.
The Vyshalka has fairly limited powers during peacetime. In their role as peacekeeper and mediator they command the ‣, which is based in the fortified caverns surrounding Hostarovy, and can use that army to quell unrest or ensure that Clans or Kith who are fighting amongst each other keep their blades sheathed at the peace table. Although the Vyshalka is the only person who can present laws and orders to the Rhadya for ratification, they depend upon the Clans themselves for the enforcement of those laws and orders, as they lack much of the bureaucratic apparatus that other national heads of state depend on to enact their will.
Where a Vyshalka’s powers are greatest is in diplomacy and warfare. They are able to negotiate and make binding agreements and treaties with other nations, though any treaty must still be ratified by the Rhadya. Though Vyskine are able to make similar agreements on a smaller scale, the Vyshalka’s authority in international negotiations trumps theirs, and any treaty signed by the Vyshalka and ratified by the Rhadya overrules and invalidates any conflicting agreement made by a Vyskine of one of the Clans.
However, a Vyshalka’s true role is as war-leader of the Clans. During wartime, the Vyshalka gains extraordinary powers to draft the armies of the Clans and bring them under their banner, creating and commanding Ordus (”hordes”) as needed to ensure the security of the Steppe. Though they must still get the Rhadya to agree with any new laws, during wartime the number of votes needed to gain the Rhadya’s support for a war-time measure is lowered to ten votes instead of the normal fifteen. Further, during wartime they can enact laws unilaterally if they are away from Hostarovy, and get approval after-the-fact once word of their decision reaches the Rhadya — though Vyshalkas who abuse this right tend to get assassinated by the Clans they are running rough-shod over, so it tends to only be used when it is clearly necessary and the decision isn’t likely to run into opposition in the Rhadya.
Finally, at any time the Vyshalka may descend through the caverns to seek an audience with the Elder Wyrm. Though the great dragon is said to sleep the years away in a torpor brought about by its great age, it seems to be able to sense the Crown fashioned of its cast-off scales, and awakens briefly when the Vyshalka approaches bearing questions about how to guide the nation through difficult times. Though the ancient dragon is not all-knowing, it is said to have never steered a Vyshalka wrong with its advice, making it a priceless tool in the Vyshalka’s arsenal as ruler. The only downside to this is that the ruler must sacrifice years of their life for an answer — the great Wyrm cannot bring all of its memories to bear without burning its own life-force, and so a tradition has grown up around the process, that the Vyshalka would give of their own vitality to ensure that the Wyrm remains hale and healthy for centuries to come.
The current Vyshalka is Yevhen Lilyavich Zayetse, a clever and persuasive Human, once the Niskyne of one of the lesser Zelvarghy Kiths. He succeeded in the trials two years ago by making alliances, cleverly turning his opponents against each other, and dogged determination to not fall behind the pack. His eventual victory over the other, by most accounts far more qualified, contestants was a shock to most Tomarrans, and his unexpected success led to his reign being rumored to be Saint- or Fate-touched. Many Tomarrans now think that his knack for seeing opportunity in the harshest of times will be a great boon for the people of the Steppe during the coming Churning.
The crown of the Vyshalka is fashioned of acacia wood and dragonscale, collected from the shed skins of the Elder Wyrm beneath the great city of Hostarovy. A new crown is fashioned for each Vyshalka when they are triumphant in the Rhadya’s trials; the old crown is burned in a great pyre, and as it is consumed the new one is placed upon the new (or incumbent) Vyshalka’s head.
The Khramadzi (kra-MAHD-zee, singular Khramad) are independent religious city states scattered across the Steppe, where the churches of the five True Gods hold sway and the Kiths and Clans cannot give orders without severe consequences. Collectively, the Khramadzi form the “Fifth Clan” of Tomarr, though few are brave enough to say those words in front of a Shrike. The Patriarchs and Matriarchs who rule the various Khramadzi are all expert political hands — they have to be, to successfully maintain authority over five very different religious institutions within their fiefdoms — and they can be a significant political force within the Steppe when they find an issue that unites them.
The Khramadzi have no official presence in the power structures of Tomarr; they hold no seats upon the Rhadya, and the Clans are very careful to keep them and their loyalists away from positions of power outside of their temple-cities. However, their presence as a singular (if spread out) religious organization with significant material wealth and manpower under its control means that when the leaders of the Khramadzi wish to speak, all Nyzkine, Vyskine, and even sometimes the Vyshalka themselves would be wise to listen. Many Clan and Kith leaders have advisors chosen from the nearest Khramad, to ensure that the temples’ voices are being heard clearly and they don’t misstep against the Gods on accident. The Khramadzi are careful to not make significant demands on the secular political leaders they advise, but their presence throughout Tomarran society gives them a significant amount of soft, subtle power when they do choose to exert themselves towards a goal.
Though the Sazhirny Clan, with their deep ties to the churches of the True Gods and frequent sponsorship of individual Khramadzi, is often viewed as being closely tied to the leadership of the Khramadzi, they are still seen by the Matriarchs and Patriarchs as being a very secular organization. The Khramadzi will happily work with the Sazhirny, when their interests align, but they are equally willing to undermine the Snowpaws when they believe that Clan is pursuing a misguided plan, or when the Clan’s actions would undermine the temples’ political power or sources of income.